Go with friends?

[RaisinBoys]

Son has place in oversubscribed school he is happy with. Very decent results, easy journey, great building.

Found out yesterday that middling (local-ish) school where some friends are going still has places for Sept. Very average results but should improve. DS would be in different sets to mates but would see them at lunch, etc.

Having minor wobble - us not DS - and seeking opinions.

Would you switch to the middling school so your child has friends going in? I just have a vision of him eating lunch by himself. I suspect I am being silly, nostalgic and emotional aa I can't quite believe I have a child old enough for secondary.

Oh for background, in our part of London there are no catchment schools; our sixty y6's are off to 28 different schools (state, grammar, independent, faith)!

No way! Well unless you are happy with the middle school. Your son will make loads of new friends, I really wouldn't worry.
Dd is going to secondary next year too and not one of her friends is going to the school she is attending. There will be some girls from her school going too but she isn't friends with them, she is looking forward to making new friends and says she will see her old friends at the weekend.

Dear god no! Friendships change so much when they meet new kids. Even if he went to the other school, he'd make new friends.

Stick with the better one.

Thank you both! I know you're right...I am just feeling ridiculously sentimental at the moment.

It will pass and I'll return to being a rational human being!

My DD was the only one from her primary who went to her secondary. She was absolutely fine. I would say that "proper" friendships didn't really start to develop until after Christmas, although she always found people to hang out with. Facebook was also a good thing for her, because it enabled her to both put faces to names, and to chat to people from school and establish friendships (appreciate not everyone wants their DC to have Facebook).

I would definitely stick with the better school, and easy journey. I would guess that if your DS is in different sets to his friends, he would probably make new friends anyway.

god no ... dd's actually going with the girl who'd been her best friend for 4 years up until said friend dumped her 3 weeks ago

even before the friendship went belly-up I'd rather been hoping that the friend didn't get in as friendships change so quickly at this age and it's better imo for children to be able to spread their wings

Also nice to have a different set of friends outside of school. Then if school is a bit tough going you have 'home' friends as well.

Definitely stay at the oversubscribed school. you can move out of it later if need be, but can never move into it.

Thanks everyone for taking the time to comment. He'll be staying put and I will pull myself together. Excellent point about benefits of having a different set of friends out of school.

Hope everyone's enjoying the sun!